Wednesday, January 30, 2013

* In honor of the end of school holidays, perhaps, this week's a giant dumping ground for Oscar bait: Steven Speilberg's LINCOLN, Kathryn Bigelow's ZERO DARK THIRTY, AND David O. Russell's SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK all arrive in cinemas, not to mention Joe Wright's also Oscar-baity (albeit less successful in its fishing trip) ANNA KARENINA. AND Sacha Gervasi's HITCHCOCK bio-pic gets a limited run, ahead of its Feb. 7 release. Get ready for a box office blood bath. If that weren't enough, thanks to Waitangi Day, Robert Zemeckis's FLIGHT will arrive on the 5th of February. Personally, we recommend that if you want to watch a gripping story of a guy trying to land a plane that's failing, you should check out this episode of FIRST PERSON featuring the true story of Dennis Fitch.

* Looking for something a little smaller profile? Back from NZFF is STEP UP TO THE PLATE (Entre les Bras), a JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI-esque documentary about a gourmet restaurant in France where proprietorship is being passed from the father to the son.
Or in true counter-programming style, DEAD SNOW director Tommy Wirkola returns with the much-reviled HANSEL AND GRETEL: WITCH HUNTERS 3D.

* Looking forward to Waitangi Day (Feb 6), the locally produced (shot in Pukekohe!) MT. ZION debuts. Tearepa Kapi's first feature stars Temuera Morrison and chronicles the exploits of a young group of musicians striving to get the opening slot for Bob Marley's New Zealand gig.

* And, of course, many great and/or award-nominated flicks are continuing their run, including the afore-mentioned DJANGO UNCHAINED, tsunami drama THE IMPOSSIBLE (Lo imposible), Henry Selick's joyful claymation horror PARANORMAN, ARGO (which has a few stray sessions left at the Academy), and Paul Thomas Anderson's THE MASTER. One note: if you haven't seen THE MASTER, reports are that the print at Rialto is rather beaten up, sadly. But never fear: the Capitol has a fantastic print, and Academy's DCP presentation is also supposed to be terrific.

REPERTORY/ONE-OFF SCREENINGS:

* Dave Grohl's documentary debut, SOUND CITY, makes a one-night-only appearance. It profiles 40 years in the life of a legendary studio in California, so expect lots of famous musicians giving pithy sound bites and shallow-focus closeups of mixing boards. What's not to love?

* Silo Park squeezes in two movies this week, with GHOSTBUSTERS on Friday night and the recent documentary MARLEY on Tuesday night for Waitangi eve. (Although, really, you're going to Bailterspace that night at the Kings Arms, right?)

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

* PTA's sixth feature has finally made it to this side of the world; and it feels almost like an event! THE MASTER was shot in 70mm (the topic of 'net talk galore) and while li'l ol' New Zealand isn't getting one of those prints, you can still witness the film at Rialto Newmarket, the Capitol and on Academy's brand new projector. Featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams, as well as Joaquin Phoenix' impressive return to acting.

* As an animator by trade, I've been looking forward to this one for too long; clay-mated zombie comedy PARANORMAN is now in town, playing in 2D and 3D! With the voice talents of McLovin', John Goodman, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck (voice talents??), Jeff from CURB, Leslie Mann, Lois Griffin and the boy from THE ROAD and LET ME IN. Laika Entertainment are the guys behind CORALINE, who also worked on CORPSE BRIDE; and the detail in this thing looks even more stunning. Check out the freckles on that kid's cheeks!!

* John Goodman's other new 3D cartoon this week (not often I get to type that) is Pixar's wonderful MONSTERS, INC. (love that punctuation). Well, newly 3D-ed at least. I'm rapt about seeing James P. Sullivan and Mike deal with their fear of children all over again on the big screen. Also including the voices of Billy Crystal, Steve Buscemi, Jennifer Tilly, John Ratzenberger, Frank Oz and the late James Coburn.

* Oh yeah, Brendan Fraser has a new Irish crime-comedy out this week, too. Hmm.WHOLE LOTTA SOLE opens at Rialto Newmarket, The Bridgeway and Monterey Cinemas. And anybody waiting for this week's scheduled Bollywood film, INKAAR? It disappeared from the Coming Soon lists at the last minute - third Bollywood film to do that this year already! Patterns forming...?

* The Uxbridge Arts Cinema Club is back for 2013! They seem to have switched to 8 PM Thursdays now instead of Mondays, but tickets are still only $8. The new program kicks off this Thursday (17th) with THE WELL DIGGER'S DAUGHTER (LA FILLE DU PUISATIER) from way back in 2011. Daniel Auteuil - from CONVERSATIONS WITH MY GARDENER (DIALOGUE AVEC MON JARDINIER) and CACHÉ - adapts, directs and stars in this remake of the French tale set pre-World War II.

* Tony Scott's (RIP) 1986 flick TOP GUN is this week's FREE outdoor screening at Silo Park down the Viaduct. Get down there by 9 PM to see Maverick, Iceman and Goose do their thing, as well as Viper, Jester, Cougar, Wolfman, Slider, Merlin, Sundown, Hollywood, Stinger, Chipper, Sprawl...
I'm not making this up. Ask Quentin;

* Now, while I'm as keen for some repertory Pierce Brosnan as the next man, I can't honestly say that THOMAS & FRIENDS: THE GREAT DISCOVERY (2008) is quite what I was hoping for. Featuring the titular Thomas, the entire Steam Team, Brosnan narrating and of course, The Fat Controller, it'll be playing daily 10 AM slots at Hoyts.

All sessions above are accurate at the time of publication. Your best bet would be to check Flicks or the theatre website before attending. Please let us know in the comments if you spy anything we've messed up/missed out!

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

* Fresh from Sundance (a whole year back), thriller-doco THE IMPOSTER is starting this week at The Capitol, The Bridgeway and Rialto Newmarket. Reportedly a dumbfounding example of stranger than fiction, almost everybody seems to agree that this thing is stunning.

* Opening on practically every screen in town this week is the new adaptation of the famous musical LES MISÉRABLES. If watching Hollywood actors sing sounds good to you, this epic features the voices of Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Ira Crowe, Amanda Seyfried, SBC & HBC. However, if 157 minutes is too daunting, this clip of Cowboy Crowe crooning with Chrissie Hynde is a mere three minutes;

* Also from last year's Sundance, CELESTE AND JESSE FOREVER is now at Rialto Newmarket. This romantic comedy-drama sees a pair trying to stay best pals while going through a divorce. Starring Rashida Jones (who co-wrote the film), Andy Samberg and Elijah Wood (plus Rob Huebel, Chris Messina and Chris Pine).

The Top Ten lists of Doug & Nige (that's me) went up yesterday, and while there wasn't a lot of crossover, there are films from both lists that are still on local screens!
* SIGHTSEERS is on at The Academy, The Monterey, The Bridgeway and Rialto Newmarket;
* SKYFALL is still playing at a stack of cinemas;
* WRECK-IT RALPH is going nowhere in a hurry;
* ARGO has a few screenings left at Rialto Newmarket;

You'll notice that most of the list above is playing at The Academy, so excuse the quick plug; they've got a new DCP projector (THE LAST TYCOON looked great the other day), lots of promising things on the horizon film-wise (STOKER has just been added to their Coming Soon), as well as a cozy new website (which now differentiates the boutique 16-seater screenings)...
I'm rapt my new office is only a stone's throw!

All sessions above are accurate at the time of publication. Your best bet would be to check Flicks or the theatre website before attending. Please let us know in the comments if you spy anything we've messed up/missed out!

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

My ten favorite films of 2012, in alphabetical order, and these may not be the "best". One hasn't played in NZ yet but will in a couple weeks; one I saw in normal theatrical release, one I saw in World Cinema Showcase, and the rest played at NZFF. Which is not to say that it was a terrible year for mainstream cinema, but more and more, I value those films that are contrary, that either fly in the face of or ignore the typical audience/viewer contract, and if it's a choice between a well-executed entertainment and a work of sloppy ambition with phrases of greatness, well, I won't argue which one's better: I just know what my favorite is.

COMPLIANCE: the most polarizing, provocative film I saw in 2012 provoked walkouts both times I saw it, and why wouldn't you want to look away? No film said more about the ugly truths that allow our society to function.

DJANGO UNCHAINED: the biggest adrenaline rush I had in a theatre all year. Can't wait for everyone in New Zealand to see this, but it won't quite have the same charge as seeing it with a mixed-race audience in a Detroit suburb; Spike Lee's protestations to the contrary, folks of all races seemed to have a great time, staying to the end to chortle with their friends about the KKK scene.

HOLY MOTORS: such a singular film, with so many bolts of unexpected genius and conflicting currents of emotion from the ecstatic to the funereal, that I can't help but forgive its indulgences and slower moments.

THE LONELIEST PLANET: no film this year delivered a stronger "holy shit" moment than the moment that splits this film into two; knowing that something big is coming doesn't hurt the film at all, because no matter what you think you're prepared for, it's not this (and no, it's not horribly graphic or anything like that). Its ending seemed to upset many at my screening, but no film was more rigorous in its structure, and if you compare the first scene to the last, no film was more quietly heartbreaking.

MISS BALA: mysteries of the universe: how Gerardo Naranjo makes a film I don't like very much and doesn't seem very special (DRAMA/MEX), and then, two films later (I skipped one), makes this balletic, kinetic masterwork of long takes that trawl through the Mexican under - and over - world. Comparisons to Antonioni not entirely inappropriate; this film could just as easily be called THE PASSENGER.

THE RAID (SERBUAN MAUT): in New Zealand, there was no REDEMPTION in the title, which is as it should be, as there's sure as shit no redemption in the movie: just a monomaniacal focus on non-stop action, one that colored my viewing of every other action film this year. (Only DREDD came close, and certainly has the upper hand when it comes to cinematography, but THE RAID warmed my heart ever so slightly more.)

THE RED HOUSE: New Zealander Alyx Duncan's debut film manages one of the rarest magic tricks of cinema, balancing a probing intellect with a generous, nonjudgmental spirit. You can watch this film as a meditation on differences between cultures, between urban and rural ways of life, or between industrial progress vs environmentalism (to name just three of many binaries explored), or you can simply watch it as a beautiful love story, and somehow it works either way. Hopefully this film gets a life overseas; despite its modest means, I can't think of the last film I saw from New Zealand that deserved it more.

TABU: if HOLY MOTORS, as some (including me) argued, was a death notice for film, TABU could be seen as its loving, luminous eulogy, a memory of a forgotten time lensed in black and white Academy ratio. If it doesn't work for you at the start, see it through; the back half of the film completely recontextualizes the first.

TWO YEARS AT SEA: if I was forced to put these in order, this would probably wind up as #1, despite the fact that I expect most people would hate it. It's almost punishingly slow, and there's nothing resembling a conventional narrative; it's simply about experiencing someone's dying way of life, while shot on a dying medium (black and white 16mm short ends), and no film spoke more with fewer words about the end of film as we know it, or more carefully embedded its content into its very form. I know: but where's the story? Sigh.

THE WALL (DIE WAND): Conversely, this would probably be my #10, one of many exciting but flawed and/or problematic films that have been vying for this space (see also: THIS MUST BE THE PLACE, THE SKIN I LIVE IN, KILLER JOE, and ARGO). THE WALL (aka DIE WAND), a magical realist fable of sorts about a woman trapped in a valley after an invisible wall appears, is overburdened by voice-over, true; but it also contains an astonishing one woman performance, stunning photography, and a hell of an emotional punch. Plus, it features the first canine I've ever fallen in love with in the cinema, Lynx.

(And honorable mention to KATY PERRY: PART OF ME 3D. No, really. I can't in good conscience consider it a well-made film on the level of the aforementioned films, but there's no film I had more fun talking about this year, and no film has (probably inadvertently) explored the existential dilemma of what it means to "be yourself" so thoroughly since I HEART HUCKABEES.)

Nominees for the SYNCHEDOCHE, NEW YORK/DRIVE award, aka "film that everyone else liked but I didn't get on a first viewing, then fell in love with on a second": THE MASTER, BEYOND THE HILLS (DUPĂ DEALURI), FROM UP ON POPPY HILL (コクリコ坂から), STUDENT (Студент), AMOUR. (All pending a second viewing, naturally.)

As for the worst movie of the year? There were surprisingly many films that I disliked, which depresses me; as much as I sometimes take delight in a sarcastic turn of phrase, I don't like not liking films. One trend in particular that I'd love to see die is the "sex madness" narrative as personified by SHAME and TRISHNA. I think, however, IRON SKY created a near-unique form of despair in me. Anticipated for years, crowd-funded on the basis of a catchy idea, it's teeth-grindingly terrible from start to finish. If the future of cinema is crowd-funding, and what we have to look forward to are great log-lines that are terribly executed, then, to paraphrase John LaRoche (Chris Cooper) in ADAPTATION: fuck cinema.

My immaculate Entertainment Diary told me that I'd seen 307 films theatrically during 2012.
Ignoring repertory screenings, repeat viewings and short film collections, I had 188 to choose from.
I managed to whittle that down to 27 with not too much effort, but things got emotional after that. This led me to give up on this magical '10', but I did put something together. Let's start at the top...

TOP FIVE (in no particular order)

These are the five films from my 2012 that excited me about movies all over again. They all feel like they were made with me in mind and I'm completely blind to any flaws they may have! Magic...

NANAValérie Massadian, France 2011
NEED to re-watch! Stunning, quiet and the way the narrative is barely-visible is superb. What a gal.

WRECK-IT RALPHRich Moore, US 2012
Perfect, made for me to the point of near-overload. Video games, voice acting, comedic timing...

WHAT'S IN A NAME (LE PRÉNOM)Delaporte & de La Patellière, France/Belgium 2012
Needs a re-watch, I laughed so damn much. One genius conversation filled with old-school rapid-fire.

THE NEXT THREE (still in no particular order)

There's only one reason that these didn't make it higher; their insane entertainment value makes me feel ever-so-slightly-but-not-really guilty for liking them. I wasn't about to say that they're better films than the ones already listed, but they are SO MUCH FUN. Loved them to bits.

THE CABIN IN THE WOODSDrew Goddard, US 2011
Unique, fantastic twists, loved the two perspectives, plus one of the best pre-conclusions of all time.

THE AVENGERSJoss Whedon, US 2012
Top notch popcorn entertainment. Witty, rousing, great character work.

So yeah, I honestly did attempt a top 10. But then I thought, fuck you. I don't wanna. So what I've done, is list 14 films that I can't separate, and you can choose two of them to fill those spots. Whatever you choose, they'll be right. Personally, I'd leave 'em as is...

And on top of ALL the above, there are a few that I couldn't even fit into THAT mess. Too old, too same-y, too faded in my memory...Whatever the case, they need mentioning. After all, how else'm I gunna fill my Top 27?

* And then there was one more that I adored, one that played the 13th Annual Movie Marathon.
Film 7, in fact. Everything was cranked up to 11, it was the most EVERYTHING film ever. Unfortunately, it was made in 2010, as well as being...um...shhh...Come next year and see!

Thursday, January 3, 2013

* I've been told that while SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS is a long way from IN BRUGES despite having the same director, it's definitely worth a watch. The plot sees Christopher Walken, Sam Rockwell and Colin Farrell steal a dog from mobster Woody Harrelson, but it's the cast that'll get me through the door. As well as those already mentioned, it's got Tom Waits, Harry Dean Stanton, Kevin Corrigan, Michael Pitt and Michael Stuhlbarg. It opened this week at The Academy, The Monterey,The Bridgeway and on Rialto Newmarket's decent screens.

* THE LAST TYCOON (大上海) is a Chinese film that had its World Premiere just this week (not to be confused with the old De Niro movie where he's a film producer working himself to death). This one is Shanghai gangsters in the early 1900s and stars Chow Yun-fat, Sammo Hung and Francis Ng from RAPED BY AN ANGEL 2: THE UNIFORM FAN (強姦2制服誘惑). The trailer looks pretty cool and I do love me a decent Chow Yun-fat flick every now and then. Here's a bit from his 1988 film TIGER ON BEAT (老虎出差), and while he's not actually in this scene, we do get to see Conan Lee fight Pai Mei himself, Mr. Gordon Liu, with a chainsaw!

* "Starring Werner Herzog as The Zec and Robert Duvall as Cash"…
Man, that sounds like a cool film. Unfortunately JACK REACHER isn't quite that movie. It's instead Tom Cruise as the ex-military-investigator dude from Lee Childs' novel series. There's cool cars, some finger-eating and a bathroom brawl that would've been at home in THE THREE STOOGES.

* I haven't even seen it yet and I'm already sick of 'announcing' it; RISE OF THE GUARDIANS (3D) is now in proper, genuine release, fo' real. A CG family film that sees Alec Baldwin's Russian Santa and his pals take on Jude Law's Boogeyman.

* And still showing; there's a few screenings of the chilling COMPLIANCE left at The Academy, Susanne Bier's latest LOVE IS ALL YOU NEED (DEN SKALDEDE FRISØR) just might be worth a look-see and I'm rapt that the black comedy SIGHTSEERS is going strong. I'm also still plugging WRECK-IT RALPH, the greatest homage to video games of old since this;

REPERTORY / ONE-OFF:

* LES MISÉRABLES begins later next week, so they've got a few preview screenings coming up. Monday 8 PM, Event's Film Squad will be showing it for $16.80 (which includes a glass of bubbles); Hoyts has it on at the same time for $17.50; plus on Wednesday night, Capitol have a fundraising screening, too! You can take your pick of when and where you'll see Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, SBC & HBC sing their way through this classic tale.

* I'm not sure who asked for it, but Rialto Newmarket has the first of their Italian Encore Screenings this week! MANUAL OF LOVE 3 (aka AGES OF LOVE)(MANUALE D'AM3RE) stars Robert De Niro and Monica Bellucci.
And WELCOME TO THE SOUTH (BENVENUTI AL SUD) is a remake of the 2008 French comedy.

All sessions above are accurate at the time of publication. Your best bet would be to check Flicks or the theatre website before attending. Please let us know in the comments if you spy anything we've messed up/missed out!